Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Prog Rock Girl on October 5, 2010 at 10:44am

I always wondered if anyone has done something like that. So where does he wander to?

Permalink Reply by Rob van Senten on October 5, 2010 at 3:50am

Anyone else had this happen? I'm really wondering where the hell she went!

Yep, I used to have a cat that went missing every few months or so for at least a week. Because he was missing one eye I used to imagine that he went marauding with his pirate friends, but in reality I have no clue to his whereabouts whatsoever. It was not that he wouldn't come home, he just disappeared from the neighborhood all together.

Maybe your cat has to report about her ongoing investigation into the behavior of those hairless mammals that seem to know where milk comes from?

Permalink Reply by Prog Rock Girl on October 5, 2010 at 9:47am

Yeah I started thinking maybe she has a double life with another person, who thinks she is a wild cat, or she just goes on vacation!

I had another little boy cat who went away for a few days...we called it his "trek for manhood".

I don't like having outdoor cats b/c I worry so much about them, but some of them were adults when I got them and much too used to being outdoors.

Permalink Reply by Linda on October 5, 2010 at 11:57am

I never thought of that Fred (tom cat not allowing my cat to come back home). That's interesting. I used to have a cat named Simon. When he was about 12 years old (we had him since he was a kitten and he could come and go as he pleased because we have a cat door) one day "poof" he just disappeared. We fretted and worried and were so sad and just knew he had to be dead since he never disappeared before. Then after he was gone about four days he just wandered into the house one night about midnight like nothing had happened - like "doo doo doo - what's for dinner?". He had not lost any weight and was not hurt at all. We thought that was SO mysterious.

About one year later it happened again (he was gone five days) and we were not sure what to think and sure enough one night in the middle of the night I was sleeping and he burst into my bedroom meowing his head off like he was saying "I'm home! I'm home. Let me tell you everything that has happened"!!! LOL. I never heard him meow so much (at least 25 times in a row - excitedly). Again, he looked fine.

At about age 14 he had a stroke and we had to put him so sleep. I miss my sweet Simey Bee Bimey Bee Bimey Heimer (that was our nickname for him lol).

I have really enjoyed reading each and every post on this thread. Thanks everyone. Hope there are some more.

Permalink Reply by Jo Jerome on October 6, 2010 at 12:20am

One of mine went missing for a week. Just as I'd given her up for dead she came back and I swear a little heavier. Living/working at Lake Powell, I theorized that she stowed away on someone's houseboat for a week? She did have a habit of jumping into open windows and doors but very skittish of people. Like if someone followed her into the vehicle/boat, she'd just hide under a seat for several hours.

Sadly last Summer she disappeared again and never returned this time (still living/working at Lake Powell). Though the worst is always the big possibility/probability, she disappeared in the middle of the day, on a busy Friday. Few roads and lots of maintenance so I think I'd have known if she got hit. And while she's microchipped she had lost her collar. So I'm really really hoping she jumped into another vehicle, announced herself to the family several hours later, and they now have a new family cat. Not the greatest of odds, but plausible.

Living in a tiny, 20 foot motorhome, I feel obligated to let them run around when they can. I now live in Flagstaff where I go to school during the week and camp out on the forest on weekends. When out in the woods I let them out for a couple of hours before dinner, which helps keep them close. They are very, very good about sticking close where I can see them (thankfully!).

Permalink Reply by Little Name Atheist on October 6, 2010 at 2:59pm

Wow. Glad to hear she came back!

One of my cats disappeared from her home (the folks who used to live just down the road) and ended up at my place two weeks after she was gone. I had just moved into our home, and was sitting on the deck, taking in the view. A wee black cat with a tiny white star on her chest came around the corner, so I coaxed her onto the deck, where she proceeded to plop down on my lap. I fell in love, as I hadn't been living with cats for 9 years. Long story.

So, I fed her some salmon from a can, the only semi-appropriate cat food available. She scarfed it down. I fed her for three days, as she returned to our deck every day. Then, I started putting her into the basement at night. I thought she might be someone's outdoor cat, so I didn't want to take her in completely. A halo of ticks around her head made me decide not to bring her into the house directly, as she could also have flees. At night, I started shutting her in to our basement garage.

To be continued...

Permalink Reply by Gwaithmir on July 28, 2011 at 9:22pm

I used to have an orange tabby named Claudius who once disappeared for two weeks. He was about a year old at the time. I had pretty much given him up for lost because I live in a rural area where foxes and coyotes abound. One evening, while I was doing the dishes, I heard a cat meowing weakly at the edge of the woods. I turned on the back porch light and, to my amazement, Claudius was making his way toward the house. He was emaciated, but appeared to be uninjured. I took him to the vet's the next day for a checkup. Claudius went on to live to the ripe old age of 16.

Permalink Reply by Edward Susterich on October 3, 2011 at 6:04pm

My attitude towards cats has changed greatly from childhood to senior adult--  As a child, our family allowed our cat to be an "outdoor" cat, free to roam, and come home after days of absence.  Now--  my cat is a "house" cat and only goes out on a leash.  There are just too many dangers for an "outside" free-to-roam cat--  being bitten by another cat can be fatel, road kill, getting lost and never found....  I treasure my cat, so he is a "house" cat.   As a volunteer at a no-kill cat shelter, I have become more aware of the need to take better care of these great animals.  If you love your cat, make him a "house" cat. 

Permalink Reply by Prog Rock Girl on October 4, 2011 at 11:01am

I don't love my cat? I prefer having indoor cats too, but I have some rescued cats that are set in their ways and spent quite a lot of time out on the streets (abandoned by former owner). If a cat really wants to get out, they will find a way out, whether it's crying at the door 24/7 or just getting really good at sneaking out. Letting my cat out sometimes has also decreased some behavioral problems--and I know a cat who the vet recommended go outside a little for mood improvement.

 

There are still more reasons for staying indoor and I know that. But this is one of those things like staying home with kids vs putting them in daycare. People have reasons for their decisions and other people who don't know the particulars shouldn't be judgmental.